I went into bed early as I’ve been doing every night recently. Last night I didn’t wake up until 3am. I slept straight from 9-3. That is huge for me!!! Then I slept until 8. I wish I could sleep every night like that but my bladder disagrees. My bladder doesn’t usually hold for more than three hours. However even with that great night sleep I still woke up tired. I would have stayed in bed but my bladder had other ideas.

Fatigue is an evil aspect of multiple sclerosis. It isn’t just tired although we use the word tired to describe how we feel but the more accurate description is fatigue. Webmd has a great definition https://www.webmd.com/multiple-sclerosis/ms-related-fatigue

Medically speaking, fatigue is not the same thing as tiredness. Tiredness happens to everyone — it is an expected feeling after certain activities or at the end of the day. Usually you know why you are tired and a good night’s sleep solves the problem.

Fatigue is a daily lack of energy; unusual or excessive whole-body tiredness not relieved by sleep. It can be acute (lasting a month or less) or chronic (lasting from one to six months or longer). Fatigue can prevent a person from functioning normally and affects a person’s quality of life.

Fatigue is how I’ve been feeling for months now and it is horrible. I slept great last night but still woke up tired. It is very difficult to fight this feeling daily especially when it’s been going on for an extended period of time.

You can’t shake it and you can’t get rid of it you just have to deal with it and function the best you can. 80% of people with MS will suffer with this symptom. That’s a huge number. The body just can’t fight everything that is going on and it just tires from the battle. That’s how I see it. So remember that you need to take care of yourself no matter what is happening in your life. Take the time out for you to relax and regroup and repair. It is important to listen to your body. I was a single mom and I know it can be difficult but it is an important part of dealing with your illness to take care of you. ❤️